Shotgun shell



July 21, 1936. w. c. KEITH 7 2,048,267

SHOTGUN SHELL Filed Dec. 13, 1954 71.767 ji'ez'ih Patented July 21, 1936UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 4 Claims.

The present invention relates to shotgun shells and has for its primaryobject to provide a shell whose surface will have only a very limitedcontact with the surface of the gun barrel and yet which is so designedas to be held rigidly in the gun.

A further object of the invention resides in the provision of a shotgunshell having only slight frictional engagement with the surface of a gunbarrel, but in which the walls of the shell have sufiicient strength forall practical purposes.

A still further object of the invention consists in providing a shotgunshell adapted to normally fit a gun of a particular gauge, and which isso designed as to be received and ejected in such gun even when swelledto a substantial extent by dampness.

Another object of the invention resides in the provision of a shotgunshell having reinforcing projections or protuberances over a majorportion of its surface and a plain portion adapted to be closelyencircled by the cylindrical wall of the metallic head or container,whereby the seepage of moisture into the container is prevented.

A further object of the invention resides in the provision of a shotgunshell having a degree of flexibility in the direction of its length aswell as circumferentially thereof.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from thefollowing description when taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawing, in which,

Figure 1 is an elevational view of the novel shotgun shell.

Figure 2 is an end view of the shell, and

Figure 3 is a fragmentary View of the shell showing one wall in verticalsection.

Referring to the drawing in more detail, the numeral I indicates themetallic head or container of the shell, the numeral 2 the body, andnumeral 3 the sealing disc which is held in place by the inturned edge 4of the outer end of the body.

The body 2 is formed of paper as is customary and may be produced byrolling a sheet of paper into a cylinder of the desired number oflayers, or in any other preferred form. This body is then passed througha die or the like, so as to produce a series of vertical grooves 5 andhorizontal grooves 6 as clearly shown in the several figures of thedrawing. These grooves cooperate to provide pyramidal protuberanceshaving rectangular bases as indicated by numeral I and shown moreclearly in Figure 1.

The grooves 5 and 6 are formed over the entire surface of the shell bodyexcept the extreme lower end which enters the metallic head 5 and. aportion immediately adjacent thereto as indicated by numeral 8. Thislower portion of the shell body is left plain so as to provide a snugfit with the head and prevent the entrance of moisture thereto. 1 10 Thepyramidal portions I serve not only to reinforce the shell body but alsoas spacing elements to maintain the major portion of the body out ofcontact with the wall of the gun barrel, thereby reducing slidingfriction when the shell is charged into the gun, and yet providingsufiicient contact to maintain the shell rigidly in position.

Moreover, it will be obvious that a shell as constructed herein to fit agun of a particular gauge may be readily caused to enter the barrel eventhough swelled slightly by moisture.

The circumferential grooves 6 provide a certain amount of flexibility orresiliency longitudinally of the shell, while the longitudinal grooves 5produce the same efi'ect circumferentially of the shell. This particularphase of the invention is of importance especially when the shells areused in automatic or pump guns. In the use of such guns the shells arenot always presented to the barrel in exact alignment, i. e., thelongitudinal 3O axis of the shell is sometimes at a slight angle to theaxis of the barrel. In such circumstances the gun will become jammedwhen shells of the ordinary construction are used. With the presentshell, however, with the longitudinal and circular grooves, a desiredamount of flexibility or resiliency is provided in the body of theshell, and when presented to the barrel at a slight angle the shell willgive slightly at certain points and thus facilitate its entrance intothe barrel. 40

In accordance with the patent statutes I have described what I nowbelieve to be the preferred form of the invention, but inasmuch as minorchanges may be made in the details of construction without departingfrom the spirit of the invention it is intended that such changes be in-'cluded within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. A shotgun shell including a base and a nonmetallic body, said bodyprovided with longitudinal and circumferential series of grooves,extending over the same area of the shell body, whereby the shell isrendered slightly flexible to facilitate entrance into a gun barrel.

2. A shotgun shell including'a base and a mm metallicbody, said bodyprovided with longitudinal and circumferential series of grooves, eachextending throughout substantially the entire surface of the shell body,whereby the shell is rendered slightly flexible to facilitate entranceinto a gun barrel.

3. A shotgun shell including a base and a nonmetallic body, said bodybeing provided with a smooth inner surface and with longitudinal and 10circumferential series of contiguous substantially pyramidalprotuberances on its external surface.

4. A shotgun shell including a base and a nonmetallic body, said bodybeing provided with longitudinal and circumferential series ofprotuberances arranged in juxta-position throughout the exterior surfaceof the body, whereby a substantially sinuous surface is providedthroughout the shell body.

